I have already posted a question about laying but there are still two things I need to know: 1. How long will the eggs live if she does not sit on them? When is it too late? If she is sitting on them but leaves them for upto 6 hours will the eggs die?

2. Why does the hen keep pooping on the eggs in large amounts? (above all about chicken eggs)

-- Stephen D Hill (ukph@edsamail.com.ph), April 10, 2001

Answers

If the hen is leaving for 6 hours, she is not really sitting on her eggs. Usually they get down for a few minutes to eat and drink. While incubating eggs in an incubator, 30 minutes is about the limit to have the top off and candle the eggs. Once the eggs reach 99* for 24 hours, they begin to grow. If she started them, then quit, the eggs will be no good. Did her eggs ever get hot from her sitting on them in the first place?

At 9 days you can see if the eggs have chicks in them. I used a piece of cardboard with a eggs size hole in it, and a drop lite with a bell behind. If you see the dark lines going all thru, it is a chick. If it is clear, no chick.

I don't know why she is pooping like that, usually they keep the nest clean. You can use the golf balls untill you are sure. Pick up the good fresh eggs, and save them on the counter in eggs cartons, little end down. Elevate one end of the carton, and then switch ends, a couple times a day. This keeps the eggs from sticking to the walls of the shell inside. You can save them for up to 2 weeks to be sat on or incubated.

-- Cindy in Ky (solidrockranch@hotmail.com), April 11, 2001.

Do you have her with other chickens? If so, the others may be forcing her off the nest to lay their own eggs or to roost at night. My chickens roost in the nests sometimes. It is very dirty and annoying.

-- R. (thor610@yahoo.com), April 11, 2001.

If your hen has started the eggs incubating and quit then you have probably lost them. Once the temp. drops below about 80 for any lenght of time the embryo will die. I had a road going in last summer nearby and that raised havoc with the power and my incubator. They kept shutting it off up to 6 hrs at a time without any warning. I have a generator, so was able to catch it a few times. I was so mad. My duck eggs didn't fare too well. I've hatched chicken eggs that were over a month old. I kept them about 55 degrees and rotated them every day. If you have the room give it a shot. Good luck.

-- Kent in WA (kent@premier1.net), April 11, 2001.

Thanks! I shall throught the eggs out today and start again when she looks ready.

-- stephen d Hill (ukph@edsamail.com.ph), April 11, 2001.

Hi Stephen. How warm was it the days she was off? My chickens sometimes left the nest on really warm days for a walk around the coop, but they were not off several days in a row for "hours". About the droppings~ When a hen sets her eggs, or at least mine, they "save up" for when they get off. I am not kidding, I thought a varmit was in the coop the droppings were so big! Until I put her in a rabbit cage and found out she was doing the big nasty mess. When she did that she would only be off for about 15 min to eat and whatnot, then right back on. If you are not sure if she is sitting, put your hand down by her. Mine all bristled up big and fluffy to warn me off while makeing a noise. Of course, I have big laid back meat birds, so me being in the coop does not phase them. Every type is different. Hope this helped. ~Brenda~

-- Brenda (brenclark@alltel.net), April 11, 2001.

My pens are chainlink with 1/2 inch hardware cloth attached. Tarps cover the roof and 3 sides. The tarps do not go all the way to the ground; they stop about one foot above the ground.

Hens lay eggs until they feel the clutch is the right size. Mine have taken up to 3 weeks to build the clutch. Some nights have been in the teens and twenties. The hen(s) finally go to setting. The hens will leave the eggs for up to an hour to eat/drink/poop/scratch in the grass. Freezing cold weather and eggs unprotected; hens off eggs for up to an hour each day; Yet all the eggs have hatched.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), April 13, 2001.